Border
security experts -- men and women who have actually fought against
illegal immigration -- have repeatedly asserted that there are two
major components to real "comprehensive" immigration program:

Second,
arrest and prosecute those who knowingly hire illegal aliens and those
who harbor illegal alien workers. No more slaps on their wrists; give
them some hard time in prison. You'll see how fast illegal alien employers
become US citizen employers almost overnight when CEOs and managers
see their colleagues wearing orange jumpsuits while housekeeping in
the cells they share with their de facto husbands.

If
those two components are implemented, the jobs will dry up and the
illegal aliens will head home or turn themselves in for deportation.
Mexicans living in the US illegally, will go back and take the jobs
the Guatemalan illegal aliens are filling in Mexico.

The
opportunity for employment is the most important magnet attracting
illegal aliens to the United States. The Immigration Reform and Control
Act of 1986 established an employment eligibility verification process
and a sanctions program for fining employers for noncompliance.

Unfortunately,
few modifications have been made to the verification process and sanctions
program since 1986, and immigration experts state that a more reliable
verification process and a strengthened worksite enforcement capacity
are needed to help deter illegal immigration.

The
current employment verification (Form I-9) process is based on employers'
review of documents presented by new employees to prove their identity
and work eligibility. On the Form I-9, employers certify that they
have reviewed documents presented by their employees and that the
documents appear genuine and relate to the individual presenting the
documents. Of course, the 1986 legislation never took into account
easy access to computers that make it easy to forge or create fraudulent
documents

However,
document fraud (use of counterfeit documents) and identity fraud (fraudulent
use of valid documents or information belonging to others) have undermined
the employment verification process by making it difficult for employers
who want to comply with the process to ensure they hire only authorized
workers and easier for unscrupulous employers to knowingly hire unauthorized
workers under the cover that they "checked" the employees' identification.

In
addition, the number and variety of documents acceptable for proving
work eligibility has hindered employer verifications efforts. In 1998,
the former Immigration and Naturalization Service, now part of the
Department of Homeland Security, proposed revising the Form I-9 process,
particularly to reduce the number of acceptable work eligibility documents,
but DHS has not yet finalized the proposal.

The
Basic Pilot Program, a voluntary program through which participating
employers electronically verify employees' work eligibility, shows
promise to enhance the current employment verification process, help
reduce document fraud, and assist ICE in better targeting its worksite
enforcement efforts. Yet, several current weaknesses in the pilot
program's implementation, such as its inability to detect identity
fraud and DHS delays in entering data into its databases, could adversely
affect increased use of the pilot program, if not addressed.

The
worksite enforcement program has been a low priority under both INS
and ICE. For example, in fiscal year 1999 INS devoted about 9 percent
of its total investigative agents' time to worksite enforcement, while
in fiscal year 2003 it allocated about 4 percent. ICE officials told
us that the agency has experienced difficulties in proving employer
violations and setting and collecting fine amounts that meaningfully
deter employers from knowingly hiring unauthorized workers.

In
addition, INS and then ICE shifted its worksite enforcement focus
to critical infrastructure protection after September 11, 2001. DHS
also developed new written procedures and acted to ensure that immigration
investigators are aware of all individuals with revoked visas who
may be in the country.

However,
weaknesses remain. For example, State's and DHS's procedures are not
fully coordinated and lack performance standards, such as specific
time frames, for completing each step of the process. Outstanding
legal and policy issues continue to exist regarding the removal of
individuals based solely on their visa revocation.

As
part of its mission to ensure national security, DHS is charged with
enforcing the laws requiring employers to employ only individuals
authorized to work in the United States. The Form I-9 requirement
stems from Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act and
implementing regulations, which require all US employers (including
agricultural associations or employers who recruit or refer persons
for employment for a fee) to verify on the Form I-9 the identity and
employment eligibility of all employees -- including US citizens --
hired to work in the United States after November 6, 1986.

Completed
Forms I-9 are not filed with the federal government. Instead, they
must be retained by the employers in their own files and made available
for inspection by DHS, the Special Counsel for Immigration-Related
Unfair Employment Practices, or the Department of Labor for three
years after the date of hire or one year after the date the employee's
employment is terminated, whichever is later.

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Recruiters
or referrers for a fee are required to retain the Form I-9 records
for three years after the date of the hire. Failure to properly complete
and retain the Form I-9 subjects the employer to civil penalties ranging
from $110 to $1,100. Many employers risk exposure knowing penalties
are minimal when compared to money saved from paying low wages to
illegal workers.

Jim Kouri, CPP
is currently fifth vice-president of the National Association of Chiefs
of Police. He's former chief at a New York City housing project in Washington
Heights nicknamed "Crack City" by reporters covering the drug war in the
1980s. He's also served on the National Drug Task Force and trained police
and security officers throughout the country.

He writes for
many police and crime magazines including Chief of Police, Police Times,
The Narc Officer, Campus Law Enforcement Journal, and others. He's appeared
as on-air commentator for over 100 TV and radio news and talk shows including
Oprah, McLaughlin Report, CNN Headline News, MTV, Fox News, etc. His book
Assume The Position is available at Amazon.Com, Booksamillion.com, and
can be ordered at local bookstores.